WASHINGTON —  Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday acknowledged her defeat to President-elect Donald Trump in a speech marked by emotion as well as a resolve to never give up the fight for a more just union.

“My heart is full today, full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country, and full of resolve,” Harris told supporters at Howard University, her alma mater.

Harris’ 12-minute speech, behind bulletproof glass in front of the brick, flag-lined Frederick Douglas Memorial Hall, took place less than 24 hours on the site where her supporters had gathered to celebrate what they had hoped would be the election of the first female president.

On Tuesday night, revelers were dancing to 1990s hip-hop but grew somber as states began falling for Trump. On Wednesday, supporters and staffers embraced, wiped away tears and questioned whether this nation would ever elect a woman, notably a Black woman, president.

“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” Harris told the crowd. “But … hear me when I say, the light of America’s promise will always burn bright, as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”

Harris, typically stoic from her days as a prosecutor, displayed flashes of disappointment and sadness after telling the crowd that she was proud of the whirlwind campaign they ran over 107 days after President Biden announced he would not seek reelection.

“Now, I know folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I get it,” she said, with a wry chuckle. “But we must accept the results of this election.”

The crowd booed when she said that she had spoken with Trump earlier in the day to congratulate him. But as she continued speaking, they soon returned to cheering as she described the peaceful transition of power, which she pledged to assist him with, as a bedrock of democracy.

“A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results,” Harris said, her voice quivering. “That principle, as much as any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny, and anyone who seeks the public trust must honor it. At the same time, in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States.”

She did not mention that, before the election, Trump and other leading Republicans had hedged on whether they would accept the results, saying they would have to see if the balloting was conducted fairly and properly.

However, these statements were clearly an allusion to the former president’s refusal to accept the 2020 election outcome and the ensuing insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress worked to certify the electoral college vote.

Harris said that while she accepted the election results, she refused to concede the fight for freedom, opportunity and fairness that girded her campaign.

“That is a fight I will never give up,” she said.

She implored young people not to give up on fighting for their ideals because of her loss.

“Do not despair. This is not a time to throw up our hands,” Harris said. “This is a time to roll up our sleeves. This is a time to organize, to mobilize and to stay engaged for the sake of freedom and justice and the future that we all know we can build together.”

She concluded with one of her favorite adages — that the stars can only be seen when the night sky is dark. “I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time,” she said. “For the benefit of us all, I hope that is not the case. But here’s the thing, America. If it is, let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billion … stars, the light, the light of optimism, of faith, of truth and service.”

After Harris concluded speaking and walked back into Memorial Hall, the music stopped playing as crews began dismantling the stage.

Several current members of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the historically Black sorority Harris joined at Howard, gathered in a circle. The young women, wearing dresses in various shades of pink, one of the sorority’s colors, softly sang their national hymn.

“Through the years as we struggle // With main and with might // To capture a vision fair // There is one thing that spurs us // To victory’s height // With a fellowship sincere and rare // O, Alpha Kappa Alpha // Dear Alpha Kappa Alpha”

A Democratic congressman from New York recently blamed progressives for President-elect Trump’s victory this week, arguing that far-left causes actually disenchant certain voters.

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., claimed that his party has “alienated historic numbers” of minority voters in an X (former Twitter)  post on Wednesday. Torres, a vocal supporter of Israel, pointed fingers at pro-Palestinian protests as one of the causes – as well as the movement to defend police.

“Donald Trump has no greater friend than the far left, which has managed to alienate historic numbers of Latinos, Blacks, Asians, and Jews from the Democratic Party with absurdities like ‘Defund the Police’ or ‘From the River to the Sea’ or ‘Latinx,’ Torres wrote.

“There is more to lose than there is to gain politically from pandering to a far left that is more representative of Twitter, Twitch, and TikTok than it is of the real world,” the Democrat added. “The working class is not buying the ivory-towered nonsense that the far left is selling.”

MONTAGE: LIBERAL MEDIA PUNDITS PREDICTED KAMALA HARRIS VICTORY

Torres’ comments came in the aftermath of the initial 2024 election results, which found that Vice President Harris had less favorability among Latino and Hispanic voters than President Biden did in 2020.

According to a Fox News Voter Analysis, Biden garnered 63% of Latino support in 2020 while Harris only had 54% this year.

Another Fox News Voter Analysis found that support for Trump among Latino and Hispanic voters jumped from 35% in 2020 to 41% in 2024.

HARRIS WILL NOT SPEAK FROM HOWARD UNIVERSITY ON ELECTION NIGHT AS PLANNED

Media outlets that spent much of 2024 sounding the alarm the President-elect Donald Trump is a threat to democracy didn’t take it particularly well when it became clear he would defeat Vice President Kamala Harris on election night.  (Getty Images)

The shift came days after the Trump campaign was criticized for hosting comedian Tony Hinchcliffe at a high-profile Oct. 27 rally at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The comedian made an inflammatory joke about Puerto Rico being a “floating island of garbage,” prompting an outcry.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., attempted to use Hinchliffe’s joke as an opportunity to sway the Latino community shortly after he uttered the remark.

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., speaks onstage at the March For Israel at the National Mall on Nov. 14, 2023 in Washington, D.C.  (Noam Galai/Getty Images)

“That’s just what they think about you,” the congresswoman said during a Twitch stream. “It’s what they think about anyone who makes less money than them. It’s what they think about the people who serve them food in a restaurant. It’s what they think about the people who, who fold their clothes in a store.”

Fox News was the top choice for TV viewers on election night, marking the second straight time the conservative network led rivals in viewership for presidential results.

According to Nielsen data, Fox News averaged 10.3 million viewers from 8 to 11 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, finishing ahead of ABC’s 5.7 million viewers who tuned in for coverage of former President Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.

The night was a milestone for MSNBC, which topped CNN on a presidential election night for the first time.

Comcast Corp.-owned MSNBC averaged 6 million viewers, beating CNN’s 5.1 million viewers. Warner Bros. Discovery-owned CNN lost nearly half of the 9.6 million people who watched during the 2020 presidential election.

Overall TV viewing of election coverage was down from 2020. Nielsen said 42.3 million viewers tuned into election coverage across 18 networks measured, dropping 25% from 2020. During that cycle, the outcome wasn’t called for days. Democrat Joe Biden eventually was declared the victor over then-incumbent Trump.

The declines are due to the the audience’s shift away from watching traditional TV, especially among viewers under the age of 50, who have moved to streaming and social media for their news consumption. Cord-cutting has reduced the number of homes that cable news outlets reach.

Fox News coverage anchored by Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum was down from its record 13.8 million viewers in 2020, a year when cable news channel viewership reached an all-time high. Even with MSNBC’s improved competitive position, the outlet was down from 7.3 million in 2020.

Broadcast networks were down as well.

NBC averaged 5.5 million viewers, followed by CBS (3.6 million), the Fox broadcast network (2 million), Fox Business Network (897,000) and NewsNation (265,000), which also was carried on the CW Network.

More viewers are streaming election coverage online. Fox News said its digital sites had 47.2 million views between 6 p.m. and 3 a.m. Eastern. MSNBC’s YouTube channel had its strongest day on record with 30 million video views.

MSNBC’s “Kornacki-Cam,” which provided a continuous look at Steve Kornacki’s analysis of the vote, had more than 9 million video starts on YouTube.